/// HD Camcorder Comparison

Picture ?

Manufacturer

Panasonic

Sanyo

Name

HDC-HS60

Xacti HD2000

European name ?

HDC-HS60

Xacti HD2000

US name ?

HDC-HS60

Xacti VPC-HD2000

lowest US price

645 $

530 $

On the market since

February 2010

April 2009

Manufacturers URL

Test preview

slashCAM rating ?

Good

Satisfactory

test picture 1200 Lux

Test image 12 lux auto-mode

Video

Video formats ?

AVCHD

MPEG4/AVC

Recording Medium

Built-in hard disk
SDHC card

SDHC card

video resolutions EU ?

AVCHD 1920 x 1080/50i

AVC/h.264 1920 x 1080/60i
AVC/H.264 1920 x 1080/30p
720p60 AVC/H.264
720p30 AVC/H.264
AVC/H.264 1920 x 1080/60p

video resolutions US ?

AVCHD 1920 x 1080/60i

AVC/h.264 1920 x 1080/60i
AVC/H.264 1920 x 1080/30p
720p60 AVC/H.264
720p30 AVC/H.264
AVC/H.264 1920 x 1080/60p

Max Bitrate ?

17 Mbit/s

24 Mbit/s

Compression format ?

MPEG4

on-board memory ?

120 GB

Optics

Optics Manufacturer ?

Panasonic

Optical Zoom ?

25x x

10 x

Wide Angle 16:9 ?

35,7 mm

42 mm

Filter diameter ?

- mm

40,5 mm

Image Stabilization ?

optically and electronically

electronical

ND Filter ?

Exchangable optics ?

Image Sensor

Number of sensors ?

Size of image sensor ?

1/4,1 inch

1/2,5 inch

image sensor effective pixel count 16:9 ?

2110000 Pixel

5310000 Pixel

Image Sensor Type ?

CMOS

Controls

White Balance ?

auto
manual
presets

Focus ?

auto
manual

Minimum shutter time ?

1/8.000

1/10.000

Maximum shutter time ?

1/25

1/15

Apperture control ?

auto
manual

Infrared recording ?

Expanded Focus ?

Peaking ?

Yes

Signal Processing

Zebra ?

Histogram ?

adjustable sharpness ?

Yes

Adjustable color ?

Yes

Cinegamma ?

Yes

Black Strech ?

Knee ?

Colorbars ?

Misc.

Shot Transition ?

Custom Presets ?

Set Time Code ?

Configuration

Connections

FBAS ?
synonymous: RCA, composite

Out

YC ?
synonymous: S-Video

Out

YUV ?
synonymous: Component Signal

Out

HDMI ?

Out mini

Out

DV / HDV (FireWire) ?
synonymous: ILink / IEEE-1394

USB ?

USB 2.0

Microphone / Audio input ?

2,5mm mini jack

Headphones ?

3.5 mm mini-jack

Lanc ?

Time-code interface ?

Genlock ?

Accessory shoe ?

Standard

HD-SDI ?

Misc.

Weight (without battery)

258 g

268 g

Weight (with battery)

311 g

Battery type

Panasonic VW-VBK 180

Sanyo DB-L50

Battery capacity

1790 mAh

1900 mAh

Charger ?

internal

Remote control

Yes

Size

Height

52 mm

90 mm

Width

66 mm

54 mm

Depth

112 mm

Relative Size ?

Viewfinder

Viewfinder available ?

Color Viewfinder ?

Viewfinder format ?

Viewfinder pixels ?

Display

Display available ?

Yes

Color display ?

Color

Display size

2,7 Inch

Display format ?

16:9

Display pixels ?

230400 Pixel

230000 Pixel

Touch Screen ?

Yes

External controls

Manual Zoom ?

Rocker

Manual Focus ?

Joystick

Manual Aperture ?

Joystick

Focus switcher ?

ND Filter ?

Exp Lock ?

Gain ?

White balance ?

Push AF ?

Audio Levels ?

Custom Keys ?
synonymous: User buttons

Audio

Audio Formats ?

Dolby AC-3 Digital 2 channel 48 KHz

AAC Stereo

Microphone ?

Stereo internal

Audio Control ?

auto
manual

auto

Audio levels ?

Screen

Still

Recording Medium ?

SD Card
hard drive
SDHC card

SD Card

Medium included ?

Effective pixels ?

8000000 Pixel

Resolutions ?

2592 x1944-max

4000 x 3000 - Max

Standard ?

JPEG Exif 2.2

Flash ?

Yes

Misc.

Specials

compatible with SDXC cards

Adjustable ISO modi USB storage directly connectable

Product Shots

View 1

View 2

Test results

Test pictures

luminance resolution

chrominance resolution

lens distortion

test small ISO image

noise / internal microphone

test picture 1200 Lux

Test image 12 lux auto-mode ?

Test image 12 lux optimized ?

slashCAM rating

Lowlight ?

Satisfactory

Resolution ?

Good

Satisfactory

Color performance ?

Good

subj.Picture impression ?

Good

Satisfactory

Optical Zoom ?

Good

Sufficient

Wide Angle ?

Good

Poor

Configuration / image ?

Satisfactory

Configuration / sound ?

Sufficient

Satisfactory

Handling ?

Good

Sufficient

Portability ?

Excellent

Photo function ?

Satisfactory

Optics ?

Good

Satisfactory

Dynamics ?

Good

Conclusion slashCAM

slashCAM rating ?

Good

Satisfactory

Total score ?
(maximal 570)

358

296

Pros

+ manual controls for shutter and aperture
+ factory setting adjustable

+ Many manual controls
+ Adjustable ISO modi
+ USB memory stick can be connected directly for archiving purposes

Cons

- no microphone and headphone jacks
- no accessory shoe
- no filter thread
- display resolution only average

- Automatic mode
- Image stabilisation
- resolution
- handling
- wide angle
- 60Hz modi only

Conclusion

The options for manual control surpass those of competing models.Hardly any lens distorsion, good sharpness and wide angle in combination with acceptable low-light capabilities: that is a novelty in this price region.However, there is zero connectivity in terms of microphones etc.

While the cam tops ultra-cheap cams from Flip or Aiptec, the real competition is from above.Because meanwhile there are cheap older models for around 500 Euro from Panasonic, JVC, Sony and Canon.To get our recommendation the HD2000 must have been cheaper or better.In its current form, the unique 60p-mode is not enough for a succesfull sales pitch. And a 50Hz-mode in europe would be very adviseable.

More information

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